Report

This research brief, based primarily on analysis of a year's worth of pretrial data from 78 Illinois counties (6 urban and 72 rural), explores how rural counties’ experiences under the Pretrial Fairness Act differ, both from one another and from those of urban counties.

Beginning September 18, 2023, the Pretrial Fairness Act fundamentally altered pretrial practices in Illinois. What can we say about the workings and effects of the new law at the one-year point?

This new analyses of Illinois arrest and prison admission data by age documents a steep statewide decline since 2010 in arrests and prison sentences for individuals 18-24.

Two-year findings and recommendations from our evaluation of a deferred prosecution program in Winnebago County, Illinois.

The numbers that sum up the past year of learning, teaching, traveling, collaborating, presenting, and publishing at the Center for Criminal Justice.

The 40% decline in Illinois' prison population from 2010 to 2023 was due to a broad statewide shift in felony sentencing practices.

This report examines recent trends and patterns in post-prison recidivism in Illinois, and includes an analysis of recidivism among those released during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This research brief updates and expands the Center’s prior research to examine trends and patterns in prison sentencing and time served for illegal gun possession in Illinois.

An evaluation showed that returning residents who participated in the pilot (RHDP) had a recidivism rate that was roughly a third lower than a comparison group of individuals released from prison at roughly the same time.

How has the Pretrial Fairness Act affected day-to-day practice in Illinois courtrooms?

Examining the Frequency and Outcomes of Motions to Detain in Cook, DuPage, Kane, and McHenry Counties

We compared jail booking and average daily jail population data for the periods immediately before and after the effective date of the Illinois Pretrial Fairness Act, and found that both bookings and average populations had declined beyond what would have been expected due to normal seasonal fluctuations.

We reported interim findings from an ongoing evaluation of a deferred prosecution program in Winnebago County, Illinois.

This brief describes Loyola's work helping expand treatment access for people returning from Illinois prisons, as part of the Justice Community Opioid Innovation Network (JCOIN).

An updated analysis of prison population data traces recent declines in the incarceration of women in Illinois.

Loyola’s Center for Criminal Justice is collaborating with Winnebago County and the City of Rockford on a process and impact evaluation of their local Focused Deterrence Program.

Limited data in the first month of implementation suggest that the PFA may be reducing jail usage, but the impact varies from county to county.

Professors Don Stemen and David Olson of Loyola University Chicago CCJ examine whether crime has increased in places that have implemented bail reforms since 2017.

Practitioner interviews suggest that bail is imposed for a broader range of purposes than is usually articulated, at least in public. Our analyses of available data show that bail’s practical results are different from those that are widely assumed. And our conversations with defendants—people who know the pretrial system from inside—have surfaced beliefs and perceptions about bail that are both disturbing and important.

The Center collaborated with the Illinois Department of Corrections’ Planning and Research Unit to examine the number, characteristics, and circumstances of individuals on Mandatory Supervised Release (MSR, or “parole”) who violated conditions of their release and were returned to prison (i.e., “technical violators”).

Process evaluation of an Effective Practices in Community Supervision (EPICS) program in Cook County, Illinois.

Examines plea negotiations in Milwaukee and St. Louis County.

Examining the number and percent of individuals receiving individual-recognizance bonds (I-Bonds), cash or deposit bonds (C/D-Bonds), and No Bail for offenses that will be detainable or non-detainable under the PFA.

A detailed analyses of 1,836 new cases that went through bond court in Lake County, Illinois, from March 1 to December 31, 2021.

Observations in Cook, Lake, Winnebago, and McLean Counties

An examination of case screening and assessment practices across prosecutors’ offices in 15 jurisdictions.

Bond Decisions in Cook County

This report examines trends in the number of individuals admitted to jail pretrial or formally supervised under pretrial supervision in the community.

The Volume & Characteristics of Arrests Eligible for Detention

This report by researchers at the Center for Criminal Justice Research, Policy, and Practice at Loyola University Chicago analyzes the impact of bond reform in Cook County on felony bond court decisions, pretrial release, and crime.

Interactive report examining racial disparities and prosecutorial decision making in the Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office in Charleston County, South Carolina.

A detailed examination of race and diversion across prosecutors’ offices in 4 jurisdictions.

This report analyzes defendant characteristics and trends in sentences for felony gun possession offenses in Illinois.

Technical Report to Reducing Revocations Challenge: The Cook County (Chicago) Adult Probation Department and Loyola University Chicago Action Research Team Final Report

This report analyzes defendant characteristics and trends in arrests for gun possession offenses in Lake County, Illinois.

Examines the prevalence and factors that influence probation revocation in Cook County, Illinois.

This report analyzes defendant characteristics and trends in arrests for gun possession offenses in Cook County, Illinois.

This report profiles Lake County's criminal justice system and outlines major trends in arrests, prosecutions and sentencing through 2019.

This report, produced in collaboration with the Winnebago County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, profiles the county's criminal justice system and outlines major trends in arrests, prosecutions and sentencing through 2019.

This report analyzes defendant characteristics and trends in arrests for gun possession offenses in Illinois.

Process evaluation of a Focused Deterrence Intervention pilot program.

A profile of Cook County's criminal justice system, with an examination of recent trends in reported crime, arrests, prosecutions, and sentences.

Comparison of results of two community surveys conducted in connection with planning and implementation of a focused deterrence pilot program in Rockford.

A detailed exploration of race, ethnicity and case approval, charging, disposition, and sentencing in Cook County, Illinois.

Results of a survey of the Rockford community, conducted as part of the planning for a Focused Deterrence Intervention pilot program.

A detailed exploration of race, ethnicity and case approval, charging, disposition, and sentencing in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin.

Results of a survey of Rockford police officers, conducted as part of the planning for a Focused Deterrence Intervention pilot program.

This 2019 issue brief explores data on emerging adults (18- to 25-year-olds) in the Illinois criminal justice system and discusses policy and practice implications.

This report, produced in collaboration with the McHenry County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, profiles the county's criminal justice system and outlines major trends in arrests, prosecutions and sentencing during the period from 2010 through 2016.

Research brief exploring Cook County's contribution to the Illinois prison population over the years from the early 1980s to 2018.

Summarizes findings from an on-line survey of 275 prosecutors and in-depth interviews with 78 prosecutors in 4 jurisdictions, exploring prosecutorial attitudes, priorities and goals.

Detailed guide to accessing juvenile justice data in Illinois.

This report, produced in collaboration with the St. Clair County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, profiles the county's criminal justice system and outlines major trends in arrests, prosecutions and sentencing during the period from 2010 through 2016.

This report, produced in collaboration with the McLean County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, profiles the county's criminal justice system and outlines major trends in arrests, prosecutions and sentencing during the period from 2010 through 2016.

Detailed overview and guide to Illinois criminal justice data reporting mandates and data collection mechanisms.

Results of a 2017 survey of the Rockford community, conducted as part of the planning for a Focused Deterrence Intervention pilot program.

Research brief describing custodial arrest patterns and trends for men and women arrested in Illinois between 2005 and 2017.

Research brief describing arrest patterns and trends for men and women arrested in Illinois for property crimes between 2005 and 2017.

Research brief describing arrest patterns and trends for men and women arrested in Illinois for drug crimes between 2005 and 2017.

Research brief describing custodial arrest patterns and trends for men and women arrested for violent crimes in Illinois between 2005 and 2017.

Research brief describing custodial arrest patterns and trends for men and women arrested in Illinois for weapons offenses between 2005 and 2017.

National scan of policies, programs, and services for emerging adults (generally defined as 18- to 25-year-olds) in the criminal justice system.

An examination of state and county data on felony sentencing in Illinois, and factors that are associated with various types of sentences.